By Matt Dees
The News & Observer
DURHAM, N.C. — Four flexible crime-fighting squads, designed to work either as smaller teams or as a single unit, are the splashiest part of Police Chief Jose Lopez’s department reshuffling.
Lopez said the new HEAT squads — High Enforcement Abatement Teams — assigned to four of the five city districts, will be able to respond more quickly to trouble spots.
Four sergeants and four corporals will lead the groups, to which a total of 33 patrol officers have been assigned. The officers were pulled from the gang, public housing and park patrol units.
Lopez noted in a presentation Thursday to the City Council about the reorganization that “criminals don’t confine their activity to one area, such as public housing, parks, etc.”
Some or all of the four teams can join forces to crack down in a particular area, Lopez said. They will meet regularly to discuss where officers might be shared.
“When the Durham Police Department says, ‘We’re going to put the heat to you,’ now you’ll know we’ll do it,” Lopez said after the meeting.
The new department structure fulfills a pledge Lopez made as a condition of being hired seven months ago.
He also has divided the city into Northside operations, which includes districts 1, 2 and 5, and Southside, which includes districts 3 and 4.
Lopez said some residents are concerned that the gang units have been absorbed into the HEAT squads.
But he said having gang units in each district actually hampered operations. Gang members, Lopez noted, move all over the city.
The HEAT squads, with good communication, could be more flexible and help each other keep track of gang activity, he said.
Several council members were concerned that the four-officer team assigned to patrol city buses had disbanded.
Lopez reassured them by saying that city buses now are every officer’s responsibility. If a bus driver alerts his dispatcher about a crime or dangerous situation, the nearest officer can respond.
“I expect this will reduce crime,” Lopez said of the reorganization. “We’re also going to tweak it as we go along.”
Copyright 2008 The News & Observer